Replying To Joxer:  "I don't think your comment will go down well here but you're correct. There were plenty of sinners on both teams yesterday. I've no idea why Basquel saw the line. I still think Small's shoulder was square on. McStay saw it several times and thought likewise. The Mayo player was unlucky. I'm not sure why a sub, AOS, was on the pitch starting fights. Imagine Connolly doing that in his day, 3 month ban. There were a couple of high tackles from both teams, including Diarmuid O'Connor's clothes line but you'd expect this in the heat of championship. It was hard to see the McCarthy incident on camera. Looked as though Mayo players was pulling his jersey and McCarty swung an arm back to release. I've no problem with any player doing that on any team. It's instinctive. When all is said and done, it was a great and well deserved Mayo win. Let's hope that wasn't their AI final. With all of our financial doping that is bearing so much fruit at minor and U20 level??, the Dubs should be back in 12 months God willing."

Replying To nicko94:  "The flying outstretched leg that kept the ball in play... photo of it doing the rounds on my various media sources today

And that 'close line tackle'.... no worse than what Mccarthy did at the end.. and let's not even get into Small's challenge... It was an absolute thug challenge... disgraceful... If that was in rugby it would be a straight red card... anyway in the heat of the moment and the split second he had to make the decision on the hit I'm sure he didn't mean to wallop Eoin in the jaw as badly as he did..."

Replying To Tirchonaill1:  "Stats don't tell lies?? I won't even go there..... Cillian is good at taking frees, and good at 'buying' frees to put it in the modern pc language,
again like big Aidan he's good against some of the competition they have in Connacht, Sligo Leitrim London New York, that's what's skewing your stats, let him play in Ulster and see what his stats are, Conor McManus is 10 times the footballer imo.
Looking back on it not playing the league final done harm to Dublin, a trimming from Kerry would have woken them up, the coasted through Leinster and I have to admit I didn't look at any of their games, think I saw some of the final can't really rem it tbh.
Dublin have not been the same since Gavin went and so many key players retired, I think if Gavin is there though that controversy over breaking lockdown and the doubts about what Cluxton was at would not have happened,
if Kerry hadn't have got sucker punched by Cork last year they would have won the All Ireland,
now Kerry wait to see whether they play a semi or not and if they win that semi or get straight to the final they'll face a confident young Mayo team. That's a 50/50 game for me now, Mayo have their tails up and if Aidan O'Shea is suspended or dropped it will only be doing them a favour though some supporters may not see it like that.
Old Moore's Almanac says Mayo will win Sam this year, he might be right for once."

Replying To TheFlaker:  "Another troll to add to the list. This isn't 2006 lad and this Mayo team are going to be around for a few years yet. People who write them off year after year are now having their heads melted coming up with new excuses as to why Mayo made the final again. This is a team that only had 4 starters from the 17 team. It's almost like a new team. And they are brilliant.

And your last line? Within 20 points of Kerry? Lol. It's a 50/50 game that's a fact. Kerry favourites and rightly so but don't there won't be any hammerings handed out to this Mayo team."

Replying To CC2020:  "Come within 20 points of Kerry. Lol! It's not Cork that Kerry are playing in the final."

Replying To bennybunny:  "Why am I troll? I stated an opinion and I stand over it. Well done on your win yesterday but there is nothing won. Go out and win and prove me wrong. I just thing that this Kerry team are set for their own period of dominance and will lay down a marker in the final and they will convincingly beat Mayo. i would love to be wrong and I will happily admit it if I am."

Replying To bennybunny:  "Why am I troll? I stated an opinion and I stand over it. Well done on your win yesterday but there is nothing won. Go out and win and prove me wrong. I just thing that this Kerry team are set for their own period of dominance and will lay down a marker in the final and they will convincingly beat Mayo. i would love to be wrong and I will happily admit it if I am."

Replying To tiobraid:  "Great to see the Mayo lads giving all their interviews after winning San yesterday"

Replying To lumpitin21:  "Never been a massive fan of Dublin but I think John Smalls challenge was very unfortunate. If you have ever kicked a bit of ball and there is the chance of going in for a good shoulder you go for it. Small unlucky that it connected with the head. A split second and it could have been a great shoulder to shoulder challenge. It's a game of inches. Dublin let themselves down last night, should have finished the game with 10 or 11 players between black and red cards. James McCarthy should have walked for swinging the elbow back after the Mayo equaliser. Conor Lane bottled at least 2 black cards. Great to see Mayo win, would be great to see them go all the way but I feel Kerry will have too much fire power for them."

Replying To realdub:  "I agree that it wasn't deliberately dangerous but that type of tackle carries a risk that the intended target could move at the last moment and the accuracy will be off.

It looked bad and he could have got the line from another ref. But that's how John plays. Every team has one. I hope the Mayo lad is OK."

Replying To jonjon:  "Are you actually serious? Smalls shoulder was square on?

Eoin McLaughlin has a broken jaw in two places and seemed to be knocked out cold. Jesus f****** Christ. Are you literally not able to see what everyone else can see?"

Replying To tiobraid:  "Great to see the Mayo lads giving all their interviews after winning San yesterday"

Replying To CC2020:  "Their core players are gone or in their early 30s, Connolly, Fitzsimmons, Cooper, McCarthy, Rock, McMahon, Cluxton.

It's Kilkenny minus JJ Delaney, Tyrell, Tommy Walsh, Shefflin, Eddie Brennan, Martin Comerford etc.

Dublin may be a very good team again but they will never totally dominate. As evidenced by the subs coming on, they are not as good as the predecessors.

Dublin are a bit like Napoleon after his Russian invasion. Kerry, Tyrone etc will smell blood in the years to come.

Jack O'Connor, with Kildare, lying down for Dublin and trying to lessen the margin of defeat should be removed. That was craven cowardliness. Have a go, best be beaten by 20 trying than 6 going into your shell."

Replying To TheUsername:  "Well now, many a wife and partner breathing a sigh of relief as weddings and holidays can be planned again with a little bit of hope while the sun is shining. Weeds will begin to worry and skip company's and lawnmower procurement will see an uptake in sales in the land of those raised on stories. O Neills will lament and crisp bags will blow across the hill.

We wake this morning with our first loss in Championship football is 7 years, an old friend we haven't met in a long long time. The feel is a mixture of being philosophical and pragmatic.

Not being beaten in 7 years and winning a 6 in a row, is frankly ridiculous, its not been done ever and many would say its unlikely ever going to happen again - its the greatest ever in the game and over the period we leave very few records not attained. We have been wonderful champions and holding the standards so high for so long in incredible a credit to Dublin GAA and all involved.

The feeling post era, i think Wayno best described it once as an old man sitting in his porch in the evening as the sun goes down, content with all in life and all he had achieved with a glow of happiness, pride and satisfaction. As i left the HIll last night i went around shaking as Mayo hands as i could - i was delighted for them, the joy, the hope of hopefully winning one, but also thinking to myself, that joy at getting close to one, we have had over 6 in a row every year and 8 in 10 years - incredible - we've been incredibly fortunate and blessed.

Pragmatically, those who eagle eyes centered on those raised and songs and stories and have followed them up and down the counrty have been saying all season, that we have regressed and that their were red flags all over the show, im not surprised and i wasn't confident going into the game. But more of that anon.

The day belongs to Mayo, taking the Dubs specs off is was brilliant performance by Mayo, you dont get to this stage of the championship with out good players, but Mayo reminded me yesterday of us, back in the last 10 mins of 2011. They just made their mind up yesterday that they wouldn't be beaten and they fought for everything, you make your own luck and from the second half onwards they fought for everything, were first to everything and they forced their own luck in the game. The momentum pendulum swung their way from the second half onward and were by far the hungrier team and made sure the momentum pendulum stayed with them through hunger and fight. Hugely fit team - they were fitter and more athelthic then us, had loads left in the tank and Horan used the bench brilliantly. Hes a good manager and has had a few skelps of us at this stage since his return and hes used that experience - fair play.

I said all season that if a team opened up against Dublin they would get joy. Mayo had 14 men behind the ball for the first 35 mins and we were just going through the motions. It was only when Mayo went man to man we struggled and its so long since that happened it completely fluxamted us , we didnt have a plan B. We looked like we didnt have a plan B and we tried to manage the game out, Mayo got a bit of luck i felt, with ref decisions a couple of soft ones in front of the post and the Hennelly retaken 45, but that not taking anything away as i say you force the luck and they were the best team. There was only one team in it going into extra time after Basquels black and when you see the likes of Fenton, Kilkenny and Con hit hail Marys and long aimless ball into the square you know your goosed. And so it was Mayos day and i really hope they go on and win it now. They have all the attributes to knock either Tyrone of Kerry of Kilter and have a real chance. I wish them all the luck and like most counties in Ireland i suspect ill be supporting them to get over the line. Congrats again lads, our bug rivals and im delighted for yee- scenes on the hill would warm the heart and im sure the day will live long in the memory.

So where do we go now for those raised on songs and stories?

I think we knew this was coming all year, we could see our performance level was 60-70% of what it used to be and our standards had dropped. Its actually incredible we have maintained it for so long. But finally our hunger has run out. We weren't hungry yesterday, we were second to everything, no real support play of note, too many times a lad was left isolated. We arent a hungry team anymore, we dint want this All Ireland enough - you have to. Its probably not even a conscious thing. Many of these lads have never lost a championship game before - which is incredible.

Taking it part, the retirements and lads stepping away took their toll i think their is over 50- All Ireland medals gone out of the panel in 12 months and of course that a huge impact to anyone.

I think Dessie, put a lot of trust in faith in lads that hast been repayed - he said to the likes of Paddys Small and Costello this year you are my men and they didn't produce with the game in the melting pot yesterday. when you get the chance you need to stand up. To be fair you could say that of a few established players to.

Looking on the pitch we miss line breakers and we need to look at half forwards, we miss Jack hugely and we have missed Murch - who i think has been asked not to break forward. We struggle, to drive into the space the way we used to. We also dont have a half forward line like we used to with Kilkenny, Flynn and Cononnlly. For me id bring Kilkenny back out to half forwards, put Brain Howard back in at that line and we have a lovely footballer id like to see get some League mins there in Jan - in Mark Lavan coming through. We need ball and transition into the forward line, no point having some of the most deadly forwards in the game if you cant get ball to them.

Looking at Dessie, he should get next year, but questions need to be asked, perhaps there is argument there that he tried to hard to be his own man, lads he put trust in let him down, Small, Basquel and Costello yesterday i thought and we seemed to lack a plan B when Mayo went man to man. we just continued our game plan. But lets see hes a young coach has one in the bag and should be given next year. Someone mad the point to me last night that our decline co-incided with the training breach during Covid, so who knows, some would say that caused a divisiveness in the camp - someone said Cluxton ws furious, who knows could be lads talking guff.

Jamsie and i thought Cooper looked a little bit tired yesterday i dont know if its father time, but ive noticed it more and more with a few of the more senior panel members. But your knit picking there the lads own Dublin footballl nothing.

Its not all doom and gloom mind, we have developed a lot of lads this year and are somewhat in transition, I think Even Comeford is a real gem and worthy successor to the living legend i think hes brilliant and continues the proud lineage of exceptional Dubln goalkeepers, we produce exceptional goalkeepers. We have strong underage talents coming through and we need to nurture and cultivate that.

In all honesty i think Dublin have needed this challenge, i think they have needed a motivation and they have a goal now next season of getting back to the summit. I think they have needed that for a while. Frankly i think they had become board of it all and that has shown in hunger and motivation probably not eve consciously. A new and refreshed hungrier Dublin needs to come from the ashes of yesterdays defeat and that must come from this group. We will loose a few over the close season, thinking Macker and Philly in particular. But who knows now there is a challenge there, i wouldn't be surprised to see Jack and Mannion back next year, which would be huge for us. I think teams now be a bit more adventurous against us now and open up a bit more - which will make games more enjoyable for us.

But the day itself belongs to Mayo, worthy winners and great warriors and fully deserve there chance to take Sam out of the home of the six in a row. I hope they go all the way and ill be supporting them. Hoe all get sorted with tickets - it will be mental.

For us its the winter wellie son and coaching the youth we've swen these incredible years with the these incredible teams and heros, wel look to our own its our way and we will back come Jan, to go again, really looking forward to a league programme being able to go to the games, win or loose we be there. Its been a pleasure and lifetime experience - likely no one else on here from another county will experience supporting Dublin these incredible years - couldn't be prouder and more satisfied with our lot. But best of luck to everyone else this year, when you think of the excitement of a one - in-a-row for other counties, you cant help but feel blessed of all we've lived through, won and achieved in this decade of the Dubs. See you all in January!!!

As always,

Up The Dub6s."

Replying To Joxer:  "Are you actually saying that Small went in to connect with McLoughlin's head? If you are then you clearly have never played the game. It was a shoulder tackle. It's part of the game. Small meant no malice. A ref, linesman and commentators all agreed on that. It comes with the territory."

Replying To TheFlaker:  "Who said there is anything won? The constant want to put Mayo down on here is hilarious. People having a pop at players doing interviews. They were the 2 different MOTM from the TV. Mayo should be allowed celebrate their win and people should be happy they won, because they are the only team who have actually consistently brought Dublin to the edge while the rest of the country whined and moaned saying the game is dead and nobody can beat Dublin."